A darkened room illuminated by moving images on a screen, storytellers who set their own boundaries and art that can stimulate the economy while shedding light on social issues — or simply entertain — can all be found during an evening at the movies.

This enduring form of creative expression attracts Hudson Valley moviegoers to independent theaters and national chain cinemas on a daily basis.

The Beacon Independent Film Festival, the fifth edition of which is being held this weekend, was founded by Beacon resident Terry Nelson, a freelance film editor and former Brooklyn resident who in 2012 pitched his idea for a festival as a new board member of Beacon Arts.

Beacon is home to a thriving arts scene that includes Dia: Beacon, the contemporary art museum; and the arts played a pivotal role in the city’s revitalization.

A scene from the film, "The Hobbyist," which will be shown at the 2017 Beacon Independent Film Festival.(Photo: Courtesy photo)

Asked about that which he hopes filmgoers take from the festival this weekend, Nelson, who serves as executive director said, “I hope they get to see work by filmmakers that are not necessarily on the radar or Hollywood, for lack of a better term.”

He continued, “I want them to see films that make them think, that make them feel something. I want the weekend as a whole to be an experience they can take with them.”

The first Beacon Independent Film Festival in 2013 featured 11 films and two works-in-progress, with Friday and Sunday night selling out and Saturday nearing capacity.

This year’s edition will feature 30 films, offering its own perspective on an industry that last year pumped nearly $9 million into the Hudson Valley economy through film production; and regularly attracts Hollywood stars to the region to live and work.

The list of films includes:

► “The Hobbyist,” a thriller about a a mysterious druggist.

► “La Folia,” which according to the Beacon Independent Film Festival is a “visual anthology of 24 short stories, from the imaginations of over a dozen different people and all inspired by variations on the same ancient melody.”

The opening night of the festival will include a screening of “One October,” which was directed and co-produced by Beacon resident Rachel Shuman.

The movie was filmed in October 2008, weeks before the election of President Barack Obama and in the midst of the economic crisis. The film follows a reporter for WFMU, the New Jersey-based radio station, as he, “takes to the streets to talk to fellow New Yorkers about their lives, their dreams and their relationship with the city,” according to the film festival.

WFMU radio reporter Clay Pigeon interviews Mark on Wall Street in Manhattan, in a scene from the documentary, "One October."(Photo: "One October"/Courtesy)

The film, said Shuman, 46, a former Brooklyn resident, “has a universal message. It’s about human resiliency and how change affects us on an individual level. It’s a portrait of people, really, but it’s also a portrait of a place that’s undergoing change and it hopefully can stand in for where you live.”

The Beacon Independent Film Festival will also feature panel discussions. Following the screening of “One October,” Shuman, urban planners, developers and writers will participate in a discussion titled, “Cities Lost and Found: A New Conversation about Urban Development.”

In a scene from the documentary, "One October," a girl is seen with an owl at a Blessing of the Animals ceremony at The Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Manhattan.(Photo: "One October"/Courtesy)

Shuman sees the cinematic gathering as one component of a community-wide arts scene that helps define Beacon’s identity.